Hero Worship: Green Arrow's TV Future

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Is the real Oliver Queen too controversial for TV?

By Joey Esposito

Arrow. Say it once, in a deep movie-trailer-guy-voice. It's got a potency to it, no? I'll let the fact that the show – picked up for a pilot by the CW – has dropped the "Green" from its title slide. "Arrow" as a solo word is memorable and has marketability to it. And after the reception of Green Lantern and, to a lesser degree Green Hornet, I guess people just hate green. Who knows. Regardless, the lack of color branding isn't what is most interesting about the show.

The main point of interest in the report about Arrow is a statement made by Deadline when they said the show would be set "in a new world" – meaning, not a spin-off of Smallville – and the story would "not be based on the comics." Of course, the fact that it's a show about Green Arrow does indeed make it "based on the comics"; I assume they mean the ongoing plot of the show won't be lifted from The Longbow Hunters or any other famous Green Arrow stories. So, in that respect… it sounds a whole lot like Smallville to me. But hey, they know best.

While the decision to keep Arrow separate from Smallville is pretty bizarre in its own right (and maybe something the IGN TV crew will tackle when the time comes), this isn't the first taste of Green Arrow's live-action counterpart deviating from the comics. Smallville's Oliver Queen retained the same basic traits as his comic self, though he gained youth, a new costume, new loves, and a vested interest in the development of Clark Kent becoming Superman.

The proposed Supermax, by screenwriter David S. Goyer, was a film that found Ollie in the midst of a superhuman prison breakout without his arrows or anything resembling the usual Green Arrow getup. And now, with Arrow's apparent direction again uprooting the character, fans can likely expect something different. If there is one constant to be found between Smallville and Arrow, though, it will likely feature an equal ratio of overwrought pop songs with reflective, longing looks from its cast stitched together in a heartwarming montage.

But all of this begs the larger question: what's wrong with Green Arrow as he is? The movie and TV projects he's involved with (animation aside) seem to retool him in ways that make him less like Green Arrow and more a chameleon superhero, allowing him to fit a pre-determined role that just happens to have the name value of a DC character.

Perhaps a part of the problem is that over the years, Green Arrow has garnered a pretty definitive set of characteristics that generally fall outside of the average superhero purview. Starting with Denny O'Neil and Neal Adams' stint on the beloved Green Lantern/Green Arrow series, Oliver took on a new meaning within the DCU. He explored social issues and was reframed as a modern day Robin Hood, fighting for the underprivileged and sporting a left-wing agenda.

His sidekick became a heroin addict. Later, a different sidekick would be revealed to be HIV positive. He became a divisive figure amongst the Justice League, often having dissenting opinions. In fact, he often bickered with Green Lantern over political views. And during Mike Grell's run on Green Arrow, Oliver killed criminals, going against the "hero code." During DC's One Year Later event, he even became mayor of Star City. My point is, Green Arrow has always been something more than "just" a superhero, oftentimes holding a mirror up to modern society while heroes like Superman simply flew high above it.

To that end, there's something almost intimidating about adapting Green Arrow to a live-action medium. If one were to take the most interesting stories from Green Arrow's comic history and adapt them to the screen – or even an amalgam of these stories, the way most superhero movies are handled – the result would be less a popcorn movie and more a socio-political drama. Not exactly summer tent pole fare, is it? Green Arrow's history makes him very specific; he doesn't appeal to the everyman in the way that Batman or Spider-Man does. He's not a larger-than-life hero that soars through the sky and can literally do anything. He's got opinions about real-world, serious things.

All of that said, this is where Arrow has a real opportunity. While it's clear from the "not based on the comics" comment that Arrow will probably feature nothing remarkably different from the CW's other shows, it does offer a chance to up their game with a relevant show that could play up the superhero aspects of the character that viewers know from Smallville while adding in a dose of social drama and maybe even political thriller. Nobody wants to be preached to, but the CW could stand to have a show that takes risks and provides a realistic reflection of society instead of the glorified version featured on their other programming. You know, just like Green Arrow has a history of doing for comics.

Sadly, the latest Green Arrow series in the New 52 relaunch seems to take more cues from the Smallville iteration than it has from its comic book history, losing the very thing that has made Oliver Queen such a beloved figure for comic book fans. In any case, Green Arrow getting his own show, with or without ties to Smallville, would be quite a feat. Here's hoping CW and the folks behind the show will consider the possibilities placed in front of them before moving forward with something that treads familiar ground.

What do you want from a Green Arrow television show? Are you mad that it's not revisiting the world of Smallville? Sound off in the comments below or let me know on Twitter!

Joey is IGN's Comics Editor and a comic book creator himself. Follow Joey on Twitter, or find him on MyIGN. You may or may not discover a profound number of cat pictures.